Before adopting the name Golden Hurricane in 1922, the University of Tulsa (TU) had many unofficial team nicknames including Kendallites (from TU's predecessor institution Henry Kendall College), Presbyterians (from the university's founding by the Presbyterian Church), Tulsans, Tigers, Orange and Black, and Yellow Jackets.

The name "Golden Tornadoes" was chosen by TU football coach H.M. Archer (1922–24) based on new gold and black uniforms (rather than the previous orange and black) and a remark made during practice of the team "roaring through opponents" (during a season when TU went undefeated, including wins over Texas A&M and the University of Arkansas).

[8] With The American dropping women's rowing at the end of the 2023–24 season, Tulsa became an affiliate of the Big 12 Conference in that sport.

Graham, a former Tulsa defensive coordinator, returned to the team after serving as the head coach at Rice University for one season.

TU shares the lead for the most NFL Hall of Famers among the Division I FBS football schools in the state of Oklahoma.

[11] The Golden Hurricane has twice reached the elite-eight of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship, falling to eventual champion Indiana in 2004 and top seeded Akron in 2009.

The school has produced first team All-American, Ryan Pore, who played for the Portland Timbers, and Kansas City Wizards of Major League Soccer.

Terry Boss of Seattle Sounders FC and Lawson Vaughn of D.C. United are former Golden Hurricane currently playing in MLS.

In 2007, Tulsa's top-ranked player Arnau Brugués-Davi ranked as high as #1 in the nation and a four time All-American, advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles competition at the NCAA Men's Tennis Championship, improving on his 2006 round of sixteen appearance.

[13] Golfers Nancy Lopez (1976), Kathy Baker (1982 AIAW), and Melissa McNamara (1988) have won individual national titles.

[16] Tulsa held the number one ranking in the polls for part of the 1972 season[17] before being knocked out of that year's playoffs at the district level.

[16] Of the Tulsa baseball players who later played in the major leagues, the most successful was Steve Rogers, who pitched for 12 years with the Montreal Expos and was selected to five All-Star teams.

Other Hurricanes who played in the majors included Bud Bloomfield, Steve Bowling, Mark Calvert, Mardie Cornejo, Mike Sember, and Jerry Tabb.

[20] In recent years, the university has been reported on several occasions to be considering whether to restore the baseball program; a formal study was conducted in 2009 after the Tulsa Drillers moved into their new downtown stadium, leaving Drillers Stadium potentially available for college baseball, but the school concluded that the financial demands of adding a new sport were more than it could accept.

From 1994 to 2009, Tulsa's mascot was Captain 'Cane, an anthropomorphized golden hurricane with human attributes such as biceps, clothes, and a perpetual smirk.